League of Legends: Reborn in Season 3, Tuning the Entire League

Chapter 227 What bad intentions could he possibly have? He just wants to sell some pancakes!

Ed Zhu's anger gradually subsided, and he pressed his knuckles against his temples, closing his eyes in deep thought.

EDG's early stages were already fraught with challenges, and it's not necessarily a bad thing that some problems were exposed early on. Besides, how many JMs and NXGs in the world are truly invincible?

One founder is also a streamer with his own audience, possesses top-tier skills and is a high-ranking player himself, and can simultaneously train qualified players, training staff and even esports-related personnel for the team.

The most outrageous thing is that he is still a student at a key university, so the biggest obstacle to grassroots entrepreneurship, namely personal connections, has no effect on him.

He's practically the chosen one in the esports world.

What does the name of Jinling University signify?
Looking across the country, how many so-called rich second-generation families can match the connections of a single university like Nanjing University?

Especially when this sophomore student had access to a new project that could help teachers get promoted, leaders get promoted, and senior students who had connections made a fortune.

He doesn't even need to actively seek him out; anyone with a bit of business acumen and who can get in touch with him will naturally gravitate towards him.

To put it simply, the reason Suning was able to insert sponsorship so quickly midway through the process is because their boss and JM are alumni.

Sometimes, when he's alone, Edward Zhu can't help but feel a sense of感慨 (gan kai, a complex feeling of mixed emotions, often including regret or reflection) – when a person reaches the forefront of a trend, even the surrounding air seems to create resistance. This world is never short of those who will kick someone when they're down, but when faced with a community of shared interests, olive branches will also be offered in droves.

Of course, the premise is that you have to be someone worth investing in.

Since deciding to dedicate himself to esports, Edward Zhu has thoroughly studied JM's rise to prominence.

The plan is to replicate this on EDG.

Well, in the esports world, copying isn't really copying; it's called referencing.

However, legendary experiences that bring their own built-in popularity, such as becoming the number one player in the Chinese server, becoming the first Challenger, and leading the LPL All-Star Dream Team to sweep the entire LOL scene and earn a spot in the World Championship for the region, are really hard to replicate.

He opted for a less ideal solution: directly inviting members of the star team and acquiring them through transfers to convert some of the players' individual fans into club fans, with further development to follow.

There aren't many star teams and players in the LPL these days. The entire NXG team is in Los Angeles fighting for S3, and if they want to buy players, they'll have to wait until after the World Championship.

The Black and White Team 2 did have contact with the NXG manager.

Instead of using the usual price-raising tactic of claiming the item was "not for sale," the other party gave a more hurtful answer.

It's the contestants who don't want to!

Yes, even though EDG offered them better treatment, the players from both NXG's Black and White teams were unwilling to accept the transfer.

Ed Zhu's sudden outburst of anger today may well have been partly due to his own actions, which led to him getting humiliated.

In his eyes, what is his identity, and what is the identity of an e-sports player?
To put it nicely, they are e-sports players; to put it bluntly, aren't they just the internet-addicted teenagers that parents used to talk about a few years ago? Now they've just caught the wave of the times and managed to whitewash their image.

This is the kind of group of people who rejected his offer without hesitation; how could he possibly be happy about that?

But after calming down, he couldn't help but feel a bit of appreciation for these players.

They are clear-headed and know how to weigh the pros and cons.

It is truly commendable that a group of contestants with limited education were able to resist the temptation of money.

All I can say is that JM and his NXG are truly admirable.

According to what he knew, the other party was actually providing free knowledge training to a group of contestants with very low levels of education.

It is this systematic cultivation of values ​​and cognition that has subtly broadened the horizons and perspectives of these young people.

Upon closer examination, while staying with NXG would certainly mean facing fierce competition from the two teams, Black and White, the latter had already secured their spot in the 14 LPL. The level of honor and exposure that staying with such a team would provide was something that the fledgling EDG simply couldn't offer at the moment.

"You don't need to run around for the head coach anymore. I've already contacted Abu from WE. If he confirms his arrival, you can then talk to NXG and see if we can buy an analyst or something."

"The recruited players will be allowed to practice in the training room for now. The schedule and basic skills... will be arranged according to the teaching videos released by NXG, and the schedule will be the same."

……

The official TGA live stream room is currently surrounded by countless white bullet comments.

NXG is awesome!

[With JM, the LPL is invincible!]

[3-0, I could do that too! (doge)]

[Tsk tsk, being a long-time JM fan is so wonderful! From streamer to team owner, from All-Star to S3, do you know how I got through this year?!]

[So, guys, can we call JM the best mid laner in the world now?]

[Take it easy, take it easy, brother, take a break. Right now, it's just defeating the S1 champion team. JM himself said that past glories are not worth mentioning. We should always focus on the future.]

[At least by winning the S3 championship, he wouldn't just be the world's best mid laner, he'd be the best in League of Legends.]

[Hehehe, the S3 champion mid-laner, the owner of NXG, the head coach of NXG—all the heavenly buffs have been bestowed upon me. Who else can compare?]

Actually, I think JM's most impressive feature is his status as the "Confucius of esports." Of the 80 million League of Legends players, half are from Jiangmen!

The match took place at the Riot Games studio in Los Angeles.

After a brief celebration at their positions, the five NXG players, led by Jiang Ming, headed towards the location of the FNC players.

The sportsmanship and team spirit displayed after losing a match were not seen in the FNC players.

The Western players were very frustrated, or rather, it's hard for someone who loses a game to be happy. This is one of the main reasons why a certain bear jungler in the original timeline was bombarded by fans for laughing after losing a game.

There's no way to put it bluntly, today's three matches were a battle between a naive child and an adult wielding heavy weapons.

They couldn't even put up any effective resistance; the S1 champion team was a complete joke.

Deilor stood in the side aisle of the stage, his mouth slightly open, but he ultimately swallowed back what he wanted to say. Sometimes, the lessons of failure are far more unforgettable than any verbal reminder.

Throughout the year of S3, there have been various posts online questioning the value of their S1 championship, arguing that it lacked prestige because LOL was still in its infancy and there were very few participating teams. Now that the team has fallen in the quarterfinals, it's easy to imagine that this argument will be accepted by countless people in the future.

In esports, the winner takes all.

Faced with the disappointment of fans in the region and the doubts about the championship honor, the team must either be completely crushed or use this as motivation to achieve a phoenix-like rebirth...

After waiting for Wu Zhiqiang, who started in the first two matches, to come on stage, the entire NXG team stood in front of the stage and bowed to the audience to express their gratitude. The next segment was the interview segment for the top eight finalists.

Unsurprisingly, the North American host approached Jiang Ming immediately!

"First of all, congratulations to NXG, and also to our JM. From the founding of the team to now, you have gone from the secondary league to the LPL Spring Split with an undefeated record, and now you have entered the semifinals of the World Championship. You can say that you are creating a legend. What are your thoughts at this moment?"

sjokz posed the first question.

However, as soon as Jiang Ming raised the microphone, the audience erupted in another amazing cheer.

As fans of JM, many have watched NXG grow from nothing to something, from the earliest player selection, the construction of the base, to participating in the LPL qualifiers and sweeping all the way, becoming invincible in the League of Legends scene. At this moment, their feelings can be described as feeling proud.

Faced with the massive crowd before him, even with the help of a sound system, Jiang Ming could only avoid direct confrontation.

Well, this man who never backed down in the competition had no choice but to surrender when faced with a gank from his fans.

Faced with the host's question, Jiang Ming did not waste too much time thinking. "The host is overpraising me. For myself and for NXG, the word 'legend' is far from enough."

"To become a legend, you must first defeat everyone and lift the championship trophy." The young man's eyes seemed to be looking into the distant future. "Then, the road to legend will officially begin... Will you fall from grace, or stage a legendary defense, or even a three-time champion dynasty?"

"Whoa oh!"

At the Riot Games studio, the number of local North American viewers actually far exceeded the number of Chinese international students attending the matches.

But after hearing Jiang Ming's answer, they were deeply impressed by his boldness and ambitious goals, and in their excitement, they raised their hands and shouted along with the LPL players next to them.

Screw FNC, I now declare NXG to be our main team.

"The second question is, we saw that NXG used some tactics that they had not used in the league before, starting from the first game of today's BO5 match. What considerations led the team to make such a decision on the field?"

Well, the host's subtext is that you guys went too far against FNC, throwing down your trump cards. Will you run out of options in the semifinals?

Jiang Ming's expression was very serious as he explained, "As the champion team of S1, FNC is an exceptionally strong opponent. We, NXG, are still a newly established team. Therefore, when facing a strong opponent, giving them the utmost respect and going all out is a consensus among all members of our team."

Wait, wait, Laoming, do you want to hear if you're even speaking human language?

The formidable S1 champions secured a 3-0 victory, with the average duration of all three matches not exceeding 26 minutes!

【I, NXG, am still a baby, and you're all bullying me.】

[JM: Because I was scared, I threw a punch with all my might. I had no idea my opponent would be so weak.]

sjokz nodded and then asked, "We all know that JM is known as the 'Confucius of Esports' on forums in the LPL and even other regions. This title comes from your contributions to sharing a lot of game guides and tactics with League of Legends players. I wonder what JM thinks of this title? And what were your initial thoughts when you decided to share this content with the players for free in video format?"

"First of all, I'd like to thank the audience for their love and recognition. Confucius represents the image of an educator and teacher for all ages in our traditional Chinese culture. I simply discovered the game's mechanics before other players, and I cannot boast that my achievements are comparable to his..."

"League of Legends has long transcended the realm of a simple game; it carries the emotions of all esports enthusiasts. Looking back many years later, it is even more so a generation's youthful memory."

"Therefore, in my opinion, neither the story nor the gameplay in the game can be fully explored by an individual alone; it requires the joint efforts of all players in the alliance."

"Speaking of sharing for free... haha, it's a bit embarrassing to admit, but in the end, it was the support from the audience that brought me considerable rewards."

[Wuhu, they're even using high-end, sophisticated terms like "cultural symbols"—am I really watching an esports competition?]

Let him make his money, let him make his money. What bad intentions could JM possibly have? He just wants me to buy a couple more cookies.

[Exactly! Buying other things doesn't offer much return, but if you buy JM's pork floss cakes, you'll at least watch the recipe video and still feel full.]

Wow, you're advertising at the S3 World Championship, huh? I'm impressed, Laoming.

"One last question." Sjokz gathered his thoughts, preparing to conclude the post-match interview: "I think everyone is equally curious about the upcoming semifinals. I'd like to ask a question on behalf of the audience: Will NXG deliver any more tactical surprises like today in the upcoming matches?"

Jiang Ming replied in a second: "Ahem, that depends on our players themselves. The final outcome of the match is always determined by the players on the field, and the actual effect of any tactic also depends on their execution..."

"All I can say is that during the off-season, NXG's coaching staff will go all out."

……

The Royal Club members, who were watching the post-match interview, rolled their eyes.

"Isn't JM himself a player?"

"Yeah, so he's just dodging the question, not revealing anything substantial. And surely no one really thinks NXG's tactics were developed during the off-season."

Waiter and Jiang Ming had faced off against each other countless times, and he knew all too well how many strange and wonderful tricks that old silver coin on the other side had up his sleeve.

However, how many strategies NXG will employ in the semifinals is a problem for IG to worry about, not for Royal Never Give Up. Right now, they should be worried about how to get past Samsung, the number one seed from the OGN region.

After the first semi-final match, the esports forums were filled with posts about NXG's crushing defeat of the S1 champion team FNC in three matches.

Some observant people even analyzed the post-match interview frame by frame and concluded that JM's ambition was to win three championships!

#How can one champion be called a legend!#
#Winning the championship is just the beginning. While other teams are still struggling with their S3 journey, JM is already thinking about how to defend their title in S4.#
#Sorry, I'm not targeting anyone in particular, but the entire Season 3 is garbage.#
Although the analysis results were somewhat far-fetched, the fans, who were already dazzled by the hype, didn't care and immediately started interacting online, almost as if they were choosing skins for the team members in advance.

However, this trend came and went quickly, eventually ending with an update from NXG's official Weibo account.

This time, Jiang Ming didn't let the bullets fly freely. Instead, he had Chen Muxin upload the posters from his club's cultural wall and add classic lines from Master Yi, the Wuji Sword Saint.

"A true master must always have the heart of a student!"

(End of this chapter)